Victory Over Guan Yue
Before Guan Yue's spear even arrived, the spear's intent had already carved a deep trench into the entire long street.
The bluestone floor tiles seemed to be lifted from the ground by an invisible hand, rolling over and rolling towards Yun Jingheng.
The air seemed to press down heavily from that shot, and the walls of the buildings on all four sides cracked simultaneously.
The full-force attack of Limit Douluo is beyond the reach of ordinary Soul Master.
Yun Jingheng stood in the middle of the crumbling street, but closed his eyes.
Behind him, the Good Corpse and the Evil Corpse opened their eyes at the same time, and the three moons trembled simultaneously.
Yun Jingheng raised his hand, but the Moonlight in his palm did not gather into a sword; instead, it flowed back into his body.
Reverse Moon.
The moon phase of the Good Corpse turned into a dark silver edge.
The Evil Corpse's lunar phases switch in sync.
The phase of the moon on Yun Jingheng's body also changed.
Three Reverse Moon unfolded simultaneously.
The light distorted around the three of them; the moonlight no longer shone outwards, but instead seemed to flow back into their bodies from the entire street.
The spear intent that Guan Yue thrust out had just reached Yun Jingheng when it began to be torn apart by the three Reverse Moon.
The gunshot didn't disappear, but it paused in mid-air.
The Destruction power within the spear is being rewritten, and every force is searching for its origin.
The Sky-Piercing Divine Spear began to hum, Guan Yue's expression changed slightly.
He felt an extremely awkward force coming from the gun, as if his shot was being slowly pressed back onto him.
"Open." Yun Jingheng opened his eyes.
The Reverse Moon is fully open.
The Three Corpses simultaneously swung their swords, the sword light not pointing outwards, but rather curling inwards.
Guan Yue's spear thrust was abruptly halted.
The gunshots flashed backward, like a river flowing backward, rushing back into the sky.
Guan Yue gave a low shout and twisted the gun, dispelling the force of reversal.
Before he could stop, Yun Jingheng had already taken to the air.
He swung his left hand towards his dantian.
"The Moon Palace."
Yun Jingheng's voice was very soft.
But as soon as those three words were uttered, the entire eastern part of the city seemed to be suppressed by something.
Everyone's movements slowed down by half a beat; even the beams of the searchlights seemed to be held back, no longer turning.
Within Yun Jingheng's body, that point that he had been nurturing deep within his dantian with Moonlight since the God Trial finally stirred.
The moon, silent for countless nights, awoke from its slumber for the first time.
boom.
A ball of extremely clear and cold light shone from Yun Jingheng's dantian.
The light was small, but as soon as it left the body, it expanded wildly.
The silhouette of a palace emerged from the moonlight.
Extremely far, yet extremely near.
Glazed tiles form the roof, Moonlight the steps.
The palace gate was half-closed, with no words on it, only a whole expanse of flowing silver moon patterns.
That is the Moon Palace.
At this moment, it hovered behind Yun Jingheng, blocking out half of the long street.
The entire palace exuded an unreal coldness, dragging the entire Heaven Dou City into another season.
The wind stopped blowing from the direction of the city gate.
No, everything is tilting towards the Moon Palace.
The space around the palace began to distort.
The street was grabbed from both ends by an invisible giant hand and torn in the middle.
Bricks, planks, iron frames, shattered lampposts, and even the Soul Tool Gun left on the ground all floated towards the Moon Palace in mid-air as if weightless.
Some things were crushed into dust by the Moonlight before they even reached the palace gates.
Several nearby buildings began to collapse.
It wasn't shaken down, but rather pulled down by that gravitational force; the wall peeled away in one direction, like a flower withering in the wind.
The Federation patrols that surrounded them on the ground wailed in pain, but were forced to sway and stagger by the gravity.
Several soul-guided heavy armored vehicles began to lift off the ground, as if being lifted by some unseen hand.
The long street can no longer be called a street. The deep trench plowed out by Guan Yue's spear has been completely torn open by the Moon Palace, becoming a rift running across the east of the city.
Guan Yue stood on the opposite side of the rift, her spear pointed diagonally at the ground, her gaze finally no longer fixed on the younger generation.
He stared at Yun Jingheng, as if trying to see him clearly through the moonlight.
"The Moon Palace...? What is that thing?!" His voice was extremely low, carried by the wind, but the shock in his tone was unmistakable.
Yun Jingheng did not answer.
He pressed down with one hand, and the gate of the Moon Palace trembled slightly. A silvery-white gravitational wave surged out from the palace, sweeping across the entire eastern part of the city in an arc.
Guan Yue raised her spear to block, the silver light on the spear shaft dimming inch by inch.
He was pushed backward, the tip of the gun drawing two sparks on the ground.
When he regained his footing, Yun Jingheng was already behind him.
The Moonlight Sword, as clear as a shard of ice, lay at his neck, not falling.
"Uncle Guan, see you next time."
Yun Jingheng's voice rang close to his ear, "I hope you'll check behind you again to see if there's any Holy Spirit Cult behind you."
After he finished speaking, he sheathed his sword and retreated.
The Good Corpse and the Evil Corpse followed, one on the left and one on the right.
The Moon Palace behind them rapidly shrank and returned to its original size.
Several extremely powerful auras were approaching from the direction of the city gate.
Yun Jingheng took one last look at the torn street in the east of the city, then turned and disappeared into the boundless moonlight.
He walked north along the dilapidated eaves of the houses on the east side of the city, feeling as if he were walking on the wind.
The Good Corpse and Evil Corpse transformed into moonlight and disappeared behind him.
He sheathed the Moonlight Sword, and the Dark Moon Concealment was reactivated.
He seemed to be swallowed by the night, leaving only a faint shadow that flashed by at the entrances of various alleys.
The Half-Sweet Coffee remained silent, and he didn't ask any questions either; any further words at this point would be a waste of time.
The powerful auras from the direction of the city gate have already landed.
They arrived quickly.
But when they rushed into the east of the city, all they could see was the gap that ran across the long street, the half-collapsed buildings, and Guan Yue standing in the middle of the ruins, stunned.
"Where is he?" the man asked in a deep voice.
All three were dressed in dark-colored Federation Army cloaks with gold stars pressed down on the collars, clearly indicating that they were among the highest-ranking combatants stationed in Heaven Dou City.
Guan Yue did not turn around.
He looked up at the sky.
Only one moon remained of the original three, hanging in the east, cold and distant.
He slowly holstered the gun, slung it over his shoulder, and said, "We can't catch him. He headed north. To the northern suburbs, to the quarry."
"The north? We came all the way from the north and haven't seen a single person!" another person said, their voice filled with anger.
Guan Yue finally turned around.
The moonlight fell on half of his face, making the bloodstains particularly clear.
His lips twitched, but he didn't smile; his eyes seemed frozen, as if covered by a thin layer of ice.
"You didn't see him because you weren't qualified to make him stop."
He said, "I tried to stop him once but couldn't. If you still want to chase him, go ahead, but you'd better bring your lives with you."
The three men looked extremely grim.
One of them seemed about to lash out, but was held down by the other.
Guan Yue didn't say anything more, and turned to walk in the opposite direction.
He walked slowly, each step landing on broken bricks and cracks.
Meanwhile, Ye Xinglan had already led her family onto the dirt road to the north.
They didn't turn on the lights.
Ye Xingmo walked in front, with Ye Qing'an and Gu Mei supporting each other.
Ye Xinglan covered the rear.
The night wind blew ginkgo leaves all over the road.
She didn't turn around, only occasionally glancing up at the sky.
The moonlight in the eastern part of the city had already faded.
He did it.
He made his move earlier than planned, keeping all the pursuers tied down to the east.
She received no new messages, which meant he was still alive.
"We're almost there," Ye Xingmo whispered from ahead.
Ye Xinglan saw a very old truck parked in the distance.
There were no lights. A Tang Sect member was crouching beside the car. Upon seeing them, he slowly stood up and waved.
They quickened their pace.
After Gu Mei was helped into the car, Ye Xinglan turned around and glanced back.
The direction of Heaven Dou City resembles a churned well, with lingering gray smoke to the east.
"Come up." Ye Qing'an reached out his hand to her.
Ye Xinglan shook her head, "I'm not leaving."
"You're going to be with Yun Jingheng?"
Ye Xinglan looked at her mother and nodded gently.
Gu Mei remained silent.
A night breeze blew by, scattering a few strands of hair at her temples.
She stared at Ye Xinglan for a long while.
Ye Xinglan stood at the back of the car, the Heaven Dou City behind her already a distant gray-black outline.
There was still a sliver of light remaining in the eastern part of the city.
Gu Mei suddenly remembered that many years ago, one evening, she stood under the ginkgo tree and saw Ye Xinglan off to Shrek.
Ye Xinglan was still young that day, but she already knew not to look back. Now that she's grown up, she still does the same thing.
"You really trust him that much?" Gu Mei asked, her voice very soft.
Ye Xinglan nodded.
Gu Mei didn't ask any more questions.
She took off a jade bracelet from her wrist and handed it over.
Ye Xinglan was taken aback.
She recognized the bracelet; Gu Mei never parted with it, and it was something she brought from the Gu Family in the Star Luo Empire.
The bracelet is engraved with extremely fine star patterns, which are almost invisible in the night.
"Take it."
Gu Mei said, "Just consider it a keepsake from your mother."
Ye Xinglan did not answer.
Gu Mei shoved the bracelet into her hand with the same swiftness as when she had taken the twig from her hand years ago.
Ye Xinglan looked down at it, then slowly grasped it; the jade bracelet still carried Gu Mei's body heat.
"Let's go," Gu Mei said, then turned away, no longer looking at her.
Ye Qing'an reached out from the car, seemingly wanting to pat Ye Xinglan's head, but in the end only lightly patted her shoulder, extremely hard and quickly.
Ye Xingmo had already jumped into the driver's seat.
The engine started up, and the car shook.
Gu Mei sat next to Ye Qing'an, facing forward with her back ramrod straight. Ye Xinglan saw her raise her hand, quickly press it against her eyes, and then lower it.
The car started moving, carrying my family, heading north into the deeper darkness of the night.
Ye Xinglan stood there, watching the shadow of the old truck grow smaller and smaller until it was swallowed up by the darkness at the end of the road.
She slowly slipped the jade bracelet onto her wrist. The bracelet was a bit wide, and it gradually warmed up against her wrist, which had been chilled by the night breeze.
"Half-Sweet Coffee," she said softly.
There was a moment of silence in the earpiece, followed quickly by a response. "Ms. Ye, I'm here."
Where is he?
"The master has left the east of the city and is moving in your direction. Dark Moon mode is activated, and there are no pursuers at the moment."
Ye Xinglan's tightly pursed lips suddenly curved into a very slight smile.
She looked up and glanced at the sky.
The moon is already setting in the west; dawn will break soon.
"Give me directions."
"OK."
She turned and ran in his direction.
The night wind chased after her from behind, blowing her clothes and hair wildly.